Information technology company GTL on Thursday said it would invest Rs 25 crore (Rs 250 million) to set up a 500-workers facility at Pune and increase by 750 its call centre personnel by 2004-05.

The five-storey 30,000 sq feet BPO/call centre would be set up at Wanowarie in Pune, a company press release said.

GTL has earmarked investment of Rs 25 crore in the first phase, it said, adding when fully operational, the Pune centre would handle backoffice voice as well as non-voice business for the company's existing and new clients in the United States and United Kingdom.

The GTL board, which met on Thursday, also approved the merger of Thermax Systems and Software Ltd and Fine Infotech Ltd with itself and has proposed to adopt April 1, 2003 as the date for the mergers.

The upcoming facility at Pune and existing facility at Navi Mumbai would be linked to enable the company to offer data security and disaster recovery to its clients, it said.

GTL has also formed an operating council comprising business heads, CFO and head of risk management to manage the increased complexity of the global business.

The mergers/amalgamations may not have any impact on the company's financials, it added.